Public Safety. Affordability. Homelessness. Surveillance.
These were the topics Mayor Katie Wilson spoke about in her first State of the City address to a packed crowd at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center.
"You ready for this? I don't think I've talked for as long as I'm about to talk," said Wilson, as she put on her own mic pack.
Wilson began by talking about the center, its partnership with the city, and its rich past. "The hope I feel comes from history. From looking at an institution like this one here, how it's evolved over time and overcome challenges to become what it is today."
In Wilson's roughly 40-minute speech, every solution she named to help solve Seattle's greatest challenges revolved around building a coalition and looking to history to inform her decisions.
Wilson spoke about the recent shooting near Rainier Beach High School that killed Tyjon Malik Stewart, 18, and Tra'Veiah Houfmuse, 17, and continues to affect South Seattle.
Wilson said her administration quickly coordinated with the Seattle Police Department and Seattle Public Schools to increase security presence when people travel to and from school. She also highlighted how her administration intends to implement an intensive stabilization plan through the end of the school year to "reduce conflict and prevent retaliation."
Referring to the Chinatown-International District, Wilson stated that "SPD will restore a late-night presence that was effective before it was discontinued last year." The Wilson administration also met with community members to discuss "legal actions" the city could take against building owners who refuse to correct chronic nuisance properties.
Wilson plans to create a "robust and multi-pronged gun violence strategy" through a coalition of city and county officials, national experts, and community members to tackle the root causes of gun violence in Seattle and tailor it "to the needs of our neighborhoods and communities."
Wilson spent the majority of her speech on the affordability crisis and launched her "Affordability Agenda," which focuses on four key areas: housing, childcare, food, and small businesses. Again, Wilson looked to the past.
Wilson discussed how, at the turn of the century, the city passed an ordinance creating Pike Place Market, which allowed farmers to sell affordable groceries directly to consumers. "That's right, a government-supported partnership to expand access to affordable groceries. Sounds like an interesting idea," said Wilson.
For renters, Wilson hopes to work with the City Council to rein in deceptive and abusive practices while expanding the creation of affordable housing throughout the city. For homeowners, Wilson plans to expand programs for affordable homeownership and down-payment assistance. And Wilson wants landlords and developers to be at the table through these plans. She also discussed her greatest achievement as a private citizen: the creation of the Social Housing Developer. She announced the City Council had approved $115 million for the developer.
With childcare, Wilson emphasized that Seattle is a national leader in pre-K and childcare assistance, but that "it's a little unnerving that we are leading … and [it] underscores how far the United States lags." To address childcare costs, Wilson plans to make "the whole arc of childhood an area of public concern" by making pre-K and childcare affordable, accessible, and a public good, like K-12 education, parks, and community centers.
With groceries, Wilson underscored the growing problem of food deserts throughout the city. She name-checked Kroger in closing the Fred Meyer in Lake City, though she didn't name Amazon when talking about the closure of the Amazon Fresh on 23rd Avenue and South Jackson Street. Wilson then highlighted her administration's work clearing the waitlist for the Fresh Bucks program, which now supports over 17,000 households with increased payments, and the exploration of a potential city-owned grocery store.
Wilson stressed the problems facing businesses, small and large. "What I hear business leaders talk about — their challenges — they don't start by talking about taxes, or the minimum wage, or my opinions on social movements." Instead, she said they talk about affordability, public safety, and homelessness. Wilson highlighted her progress in cutting red tape, the growth of the city program to fill vacant storefronts, and greater support for small businesses in repairing property damage.
Wilson also spoke directly to the business community, praising the work they do for Seattle and its economy, but also addressing the work they need to do to lower costs. "Affordability is not government responsibility alone. It is a shared economic imperative."
Wilson started her comments addressing homelessness by discussing the Ballard encampment that had been recently swept, saying it "underscored the reality that we do not have enough housing, shelter, and services for everyone who is living unsheltered."
Wilson underlined the competing interests of the general public in using public spaces, while supporting those who are unsheltered. "I'm committed to minimizing harm to people living in encampments at the same time as I take seriously the city's mandate to keep public spaces open and accessible for their intended use."
Wilson then highlighted her work in accelerating the expansion of shelters with services and identifying city-owned land for shelter and tiny home villages. Wilson said that she will introduce legislation to fund shelter expansion and make it faster and easier to build shelters, acknowledging change will take time. "But I am determined to add one thousand new units this year with services to match their needs," said Wilson.
"Of course, Seattle has not yet seen a surge of ICE activity like we saw in Minneapolis, but we are doing everything we can to prepare," she said. That preparation includes amplifying the work of the Office of Immigration and Refugee Affairs, launching a webpage of resources, clarifying SPD's responsibility to document illegal federal acts, and banning the staging of federal officers on city property.
Wilson acknowledged that one challenge of her coalition-building was police CCTV cameras. "I continue to have the concerns that I expressed during the campaign … and I have also been moved by what I've heard from families and communities impacted by gun violence."
Wilson stressed data privacy concerns and the federal government's potential use of the cameras, but also said the cameras were a "useful tool" for solving crimes and preventing racial profiling.
Wilson stated two weeks ago that the city would soon hear more on the CCTV issue, but at the address she said that she would not rush her decision.
Wilson then spoke on what to expect from the city in 2026, from community center openings to the World Cup to public transit and new public bathroom openings. In an off-script moment that was her only mention of pedestrian safety, Wilson talked about the recent death of a pedestrian on Capitol Hill and how the city is "not on track for our Vision Zero goals."
Wilson then ended by addressing the potential challenges, disagreements, and outrages the administration would face. "Maybe there will be more quote tweets from Elon Musk," she said.
But Wilson wanted to focus on the hope and excitement in the city, even referencing Seattle Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV, who she said had a good message for the haters.
"He said, 'We're here to stay, and we ain't going nowhere.' And that's how I feel about Team Seattle, too."
Connor Nash is an economist with degrees in economics, political science, and public affairs. Originally from Maryland, he has lived in Seattle for six years.
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